Following Monday's ugliness (subscription required), Lions Gate (NYSE:LGF) took another hit Wednesday with Wall Street starting to sour a bit on the movie Divergent because of the trend in negative reviews we highlighted.

Divergent has felt like it's had maybe 20% of the hype the first Hunger Games did. And it doesn't have the type of romance/love story factor of the Twilight series, which was basically this teen generation's Titanic.

I recently mentioned that I was looking at the short side for Lions Gate, and there's still some appeal there.

If Divergent disappoints (current expectations are for around a $50 million weekend opening), then it follows Ender's Game as a franchise investors will write off.

While Lions Gate is no Disney (NYSE:DIS), it does have a solid portfolio outside of these tentpole franchises. But the stock moves based on awareness of and expectations for the big movies -- not the strength of the whole portfolio. The tendency has been for Lions Gate to run up big before a hot movie is released, at which point expectations top out and a sell-off comes. Through that prism of behavior, it's basically the Take-Two Interactive (NASDAQ:TTWO) of film/TV companies.

So if we assume Ender's Game is still up in the air, and Divergent doesn't turn into a real franchise, what does that leave to drive the stock?

There are two more Hunger Games sequels that will, in all likelihood, be big hits, but everyone knows about them, and without another blockbuster franchise to pick up the slack, long-term expectations have to go down.

But wait -- there's another ugly angle to consider. If Divergent disappoints, will investors start worrying that the dystopian teen sci-fi trend is on its way out?

Could the fact that Barnes and Noble (NYSE:BKS) and Amazon.com (NASDAQ:AMZN) are packed with Hunger Games clones be a sign that the top is in?

That could damage expectations for the crown jewel itself (The Hunger Games), which would mean all bets are off.

And what does Wall Street think of Lions Gate now? According to Bloomberg, there are 12 buy ratings, two holds, and zero sells, with a $39.73 average target price.

They're certainly not considering the worst-case scenario, which seems to have a growing likelihood of coming true.

I'll update Buzz readers if I take action. For now, I'm on the sidelines.

The information on this website solely reflects the analysis of or opinion about the performance of securities and financial markets by the writers whose articles appear on the site. The views expressed by the writers are not necessarily the views of Minyanville Media, Inc. or members of its management. Nothing contained on the website is intended to constitute a recommendation or advice addressed to an individual investor or category of investors to purchase, sell or hold any security, or to take any action with respect to the prospective movement of the securities markets or to solicit the purchase or sale of any security. Any investment decisions must be made by the reader either individually or in consultation with his or her investment professional. Minyanville writers and staff may trade or hold positions in securities that are discussed in articles appearing on the website. Writers of articles are required to disclose whether they have a position in any stock or fund discussed in an article, but are not permitted to disclose the size or direction of the position. Nothing on this website is intended to solicit business of any kind for a writer's business or fund. Minyanville management and staff as well as contributing writers will not respond to emails or other communications requesting investment advice.

Following Monday's ugliness (subscription required), Lions Gate (NYSE:LGF) took another hit Wednesday with Wall Street starting to sour a bit on the movie Divergent because of the trend in negative reviews we highlighted.

Divergent has felt like it's had maybe 20% of the hype the first Hunger Games did. And it doesn't have the type of romance/love story factor of the Twilight series, which was basically this teen generation's Titanic.

I recently mentioned that I was looking at the short side for Lions Gate, and there's still some appeal there.

If Divergent disappoints (current expectations are for around a $50 million weekend opening), then it follows Ender's Game as a franchise investors will write off.

While Lions Gate is no Disney (NYSE:DIS), it does have a solid portfolio outside of these tentpole franchises. But the stock moves based on awareness of and expectations for the big movies -- not the strength of the whole portfolio. The tendency has been for Lions Gate to run up big before a hot movie is released, at which point expectations top out and a sell-off comes. Through that prism of behavior, it's basically the Take-Two Interactive (NASDAQ:TTWO) of film/TV companies.

So if we assume Ender's Game is still up in the air, and Divergent doesn't turn into a real franchise, what does that leave to drive the stock?

There are two more Hunger Games sequels that will, in all likelihood, be big hits, but everyone knows about them, and without another blockbuster franchise to pick up the slack, long-term expectations have to go down.

But wait -- there's another ugly angle to consider. If Divergent disappoints, will investors start worrying that the dystopian teen sci-fi trend is on its way out?

Could the fact that Barnes and Noble (NYSE:BKS) and Amazon.com (NASDAQ:AMZN) are packed with Hunger Games clones be a sign that the top is in?

That could damage expectations for the crown jewel itself (The Hunger Games), which would mean all bets are off.

And what does Wall Street think of Lions Gate now? According to Bloomberg, there are 12 buy ratings, two holds, and zero sells, with a $39.73 average target price.

They're certainly not considering the worst-case scenario, which seems to have a growing likelihood of coming true.

I'll update Buzz readers if I take action. For now, I'm on the sidelines.

The information on this website solely reflects the analysis of or opinion about the performance of securities and financial markets by the writers whose articles appear on the site. The views expressed by the writers are not necessarily the views of Minyanville Media, Inc. or members of its management. Nothing contained on the website is intended to constitute a recommendation or advice addressed to an individual investor or category of investors to purchase, sell or hold any security, or to take any action with respect to the prospective movement of the securities markets or to solicit the purchase or sale of any security. Any investment decisions must be made by the reader either individually or in consultation with his or her investment professional. Minyanville writers and staff may trade or hold positions in securities that are discussed in articles appearing on the website. Writers of articles are required to disclose whether they have a position in any stock or fund discussed in an article, but are not permitted to disclose the size or direction of the position. Nothing on this website is intended to solicit business of any kind for a writer's business or fund. Minyanville management and staff as well as contributing writers will not respond to emails or other communications requesting investment advice.

Following Monday's ugliness (subscription required), Lions Gate (NYSE:LGF) took another hit Wednesday with Wall Street starting to sour a bit on the movie Divergent because of the trend in negative reviews we highlighted.

Divergent has felt like it's had maybe 20% of the hype the first Hunger Games did. And it doesn't have the type of romance/love story factor of the Twilight series, which was basically this teen generation's Titanic.

I recently mentioned that I was looking at the short side for Lions Gate, and there's still some appeal there.

If Divergent disappoints (current expectations are for around a $50 million weekend opening), then it follows Ender's Game as a franchise investors will write off.

While Lions Gate is no Disney (NYSE:DIS), it does have a solid portfolio outside of these tentpole franchises. But the stock moves based on awareness of and expectations for the big movies -- not the strength of the whole portfolio. The tendency has been for Lions Gate to run up big before a hot movie is released, at which point expectations top out and a sell-off comes. Through that prism of behavior, it's basically the Take-Two Interactive (NASDAQ:TTWO) of film/TV companies.

So if we assume Ender's Game is still up in the air, and Divergent doesn't turn into a real franchise, what does that leave to drive the stock?

There are two more Hunger Games sequels that will, in all likelihood, be big hits, but everyone knows about them, and without another blockbuster franchise to pick up the slack, long-term expectations have to go down.

But wait -- there's another ugly angle to consider. If Divergent disappoints, will investors start worrying that the dystopian teen sci-fi trend is on its way out?

Could the fact that Barnes and Noble (NYSE:BKS) and Amazon.com (NASDAQ:AMZN) are packed with Hunger Games clones be a sign that the top is in?

That could damage expectations for the crown jewel itself (The Hunger Games), which would mean all bets are off.

And what does Wall Street think of Lions Gate now? According to Bloomberg, there are 12 buy ratings, two holds, and zero sells, with a $39.73 average target price.

They're certainly not considering the worst-case scenario, which seems to have a growing likelihood of coming true.

I'll update Buzz readers if I take action. For now, I'm on the sidelines.

The information on this website solely reflects the analysis of or opinion about the performance of securities and financial markets by the writers whose articles appear on the site. The views expressed by the writers are not necessarily the views of Minyanville Media, Inc. or members of its management. Nothing contained on the website is intended to constitute a recommendation or advice addressed to an individual investor or category of investors to purchase, sell or hold any security, or to take any action with respect to the prospective movement of the securities markets or to solicit the purchase or sale of any security. Any investment decisions must be made by the reader either individually or in consultation with his or her investment professional. Minyanville writers and staff may trade or hold positions in securities that are discussed in articles appearing on the website. Writers of articles are required to disclose whether they have a position in any stock or fund discussed in an article, but are not permitted to disclose the size or direction of the position. Nothing on this website is intended to solicit business of any kind for a writer's business or fund. Minyanville management and staff as well as contributing writers will not respond to emails or other communications requesting investment advice.

Copyright 2011 Minyanville Media, Inc. All Rights Reserved.

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